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So this is the last of my Barcelona batch. Gotta end it with night shots of Sagrada Famila, the one spot that got me so into Barcelona in the first place. Ever since college, I might add.

So adiós for now, Barcelona. You are still at the top of my list of cities I want to move to. Hopefully someday in the future, when all is well at your part of the world, we’ll bump into each other again.

In the midst of all the touristy shots I have taken of Barcelona, I had also shot a few street photographs of inconspicuous spots within the city. Usually places deemed ordinary by Spaniards and tourists alike. I’m no street photographer, but finding spots like these are great for practice.

Some are just normal streets or roadways around the residential areas.

Others are quiet spaces seen from the loud, commercialized tourist hot spots, like this messy neighborhood from the rooftops of Palau Güell…

Or this seemingly pissy graffiti a quarter mile down from Park Güell.

There’s also this workshop around Poble Espanyol…

The tram heading to Tibidabo…

And the view of the shipping port from the top of Montjuic Castle.

When I tell some people that I would love to someday move to Barcelona, that this is one city I can see myself living in, the response had always been the same: that I have only seen the touristy parts of the city and that I haven’t seen the actual, real side of Barcelona. In a way, they are correct. One week in Barcelona is not enough to see everything. But what they fail to realize is that I am a very observant person. And I love to explore. When I travel, I see so many things that people don’t often pay attention to, whether I’m in a tourist spot or I purposely ventured outside of those tourist spots. And from what I’ve seen of Barcelona so far, I likes.

Casa Milà, aka La Pedrera, is one of the most popular hot spots in Barcelona. Too bad it was closed for the entire, freakin’ week I was there.

Anyway…

Built in 1906 and completed in 1912, this century-old structure was Gaudí’s most controversial one. Not because of any particular drama. People just didn’t like it. Disapproving citizens ridiculed it, calling it “La Pedrera” or “the stone quarry,” in reference to its weird design.

I don’t know what they were complaining about. To me, it looked just like Casa Batlló, except fatter and less colorful. My only complaint was that they wouldn’t let me inside. I was only able to take a picture through the front doors.

And here’s another take on Montjuïc Castle. Nothing new here. Just more pictures of that quiet fortress on top of Montjuïc Hill in color. Very peaceful here. And windy. Did I already mentioned windy? Yeah, it was very windy.

Aside from the National Museum of Catalan Art and Tibidabo, the other hilltop structure that I kept seeing all over from the rooftops of Barcelona was the Montjuïc Castle, a military fortress that sits atop of the Montjuïc hill next to a seaside port.

It has a rich Catalan history that spans nearly 400 years. Not a lot of tourists tend to venture on these parts, so lucky me, I almost had the entire place to myself.

As I mentioned before, we stayed right by the edge of Gothic Quarters in La Rambla. Almost everyday, we passed by Pont del Bisbe and the Barcelona Cathedral. It’s one my favorite spots in Barcelona. Lots of things to see and lots of places to eat.

On early mornings, farmer’s markets would sprout out in random squares. Afternoons would bring street performers by Plaza de la Seu. And very late at night, you can hear opera singers belting out next to the cathedral.

Then one day, we happened upon an ancient looking door by the buildings behind the cathedral. It led to what appeared to be an old building converted in an office space. Nothing interesting. But within that building in the patio area were four unearthed, ancient columns from the Roman times. Pretty spiffy!

Wish my office building could have something like that. The closest thing we can get in Cali is an ancient Native American Burial ground (or any form of cemetery for that matter) and that’s not a good thing.